Biggles Forms a Syndicate/plot
Chapter 1: A Pilot Tells a Tale An old acquaintance of Biggles, the eccentric but highly skilled pilot Squadron Leader "Dizzy" Digswell pays a call on the Air Police crew. He has a tale to tell--he thinks he has found the location of the lost biblical city of Ophir. Chapter 2: Dizzy Tells His Story "Dizzy" had been stationed at Aden. While out on a flight, he had been caught in a snadstoprm. His engine had failed and he had been forced to bail out near the emrgency landing gronud of Hautha. IN a cliff face, he discovered a crack which looked artifical and in fact lead to a cavern where he found tablets of stone and an old coin. Chapter 3: Biggles Makes a Suggestion "Dizzy" kept quiet about his discovery until he retired from the R.A.F. Believing he might have found the lost city of Ophir, "Dizzy" spent a lot of time at the British Museum researching. When he asked about the coin he had found, the curator introduced him to one Majoli, supposedly an expert on Arabia, for an opinion. "Dizzy" wanted Biggles' help to mount an expedition but Biggles declined to use his official position to smooth out the formalities. He does suggest, however, that they could form a syndicate and share the cost and profits from the venture. They will, of course have to go on their own time, so Bertie and Ginger apply for leave to go with "Dizzy". Chapter 4: Tragedy Looms A fortnight later, Biggles reads a newspaper report that a Dakota had been found abandoned in the desert. R.A.F. aircraft had searched the area and had failed to find the three crewmen. Biggles is forced to confess the whole story to Air Commodore Raymond and get his reluctant permission to fly to Aden with Algy to find out what happened. Arriving at Aden, Biggles and Algy examine the Dakota, which the R.A.F. personnel had flown back to the station. To their surprise, they find the First Aid Kit missing. Chapter 5: Mostly Surmise The next morning, the mystery deepens when Flying Officer Smith tells Biggles he had assistent adjutant on duty not long ago when Majoli had turned up at the station asking questions about "Dizzy". Biggles and Algy fly out to Hautha. They can't find the crack in the cliff face--it appears to be covered by rocks from a recent landslide. Biggles surmises that Bertie and "Dizzy" might have been trapped inside the cavern. Chapter 6: Trapped Which is what exactly did happen--after landing at Hautha, "Dizzy" had rushed off to the cavern with Bertie. Inside, he had lifted a pot and dropped it on the floor too hard. This shook the surroundings and triggered a landslide which shut them in. They tried to dig their way out but it is no use and soon their meagre supply of water and food ran out. Chapter 7: Heartbreaking Work Biggles succeeds in digging Bertie and "Dizzy" out. He sends Algy back to Aden to fetch the Dakota. But where is Ginger? Chapter 8: Fresh Trouble But their troubles are not yet over. A yacht lands on the coast about half a mile away and four men come ashore and walk towards them. It turns out to be Majoli with three toughs. Chapter 9: Awkward Moments Majoli demands to know where the treasure is and does not believe Biggles when he says he doesn't have any. Drawing a gun, Majoli insists that Biggles show them the way to the cave with the treasure. But Biggles also manages to draw his gun and an uneasy truce develops. Biggles will show Majoli the place because he also wants to search the cliff face for Ginger. Chapter 10: Up the Hill and Down The Algy and Biggles go up the hill to the cliff face with Majoli and his gang. At the landslide covering the entrance to the cave, Majoli, terribly frustrated, accuses Biggles of showing him the place only because he knew no one could get at it, something which Biggles does not deny. Majoli intends to return with explosives to do the job but in the mean time, he threatens to kill Biggles and Algy because they alreay know too much. Whether Majoli intended to carry out this threat would never be known because just at that moment, some Arabs hidden on the high ground above them open fire with rifles--Biggles would later learn that these are Yemeni raiders on an border incursion. Biggles and Algy take the opportunity to escape but running down the hill, they spot a large party of horsemen approaching at the gallop. Trapped like meat in a sandwich, Biggles tells Algy, "It looks to me as if we've had it." Chapter 11: Ginger's Dilemma The story now rewinds to Ginger's point of view. Bertie and "Dizzy" had departed for the cave and Ginger had waited for them at the aircraft but now feeling that they were overdue, he decides to walk to the cave to look for them. On the way, he meets a large group of some 12 Arab horsemen who urge him to come with them. They don't speak much English but keep saying, "Come!" and, "Men die." Ginger thinks they might be refering to Bertie or "Dizzy" and mounts a horse to go with the Arabs. But Ginger ends up at the camp of Sheikh Mital ibn Yezzin whose son has fallen gravely ill after being bitten by a camel. The shiekh appeals to Ginger to treat his son. Ginger remembers that the First Aid Kit in the Dakota has penincillin and men are sent to fetch it. Chapter 12: "The Will of God" The men return with the First Aid Kit but also bring disturbing news that Bertie and "Dizzy" were not there at the aircraft. Ginger gives the Sheikh's son a couple of penicillin injections and the son is soon better. This is a relief to the Sheikh but not to Ginger, who is still worried about the fate of his friends. He decides he must go back to Hautha to search for them. The Sheikh offers to accompany him personally with a force of men, in case there should be trouble. Chapter 13: The Sheikh Lends a Hand Meanwhile at Hautha, Biggles and Algy wait for the end but of course, the large group of horsemen approaching is actually the Sheikh arriving with Ginger. Ginger introduces the Sheikh to Biggles who tells them what has been happening. The Sheikh would very much like to kill Majoli and his toughs but he accedes to Biggles' preference and sends men to drive them off with a warning not to step foot on this part of the world again. The Yemeni raiders are also driven off. Chapter 14: Biggles Sits Back The Sheikh's men help clear the landslide away. Biggles and co. gather up the coins in the cave and head on home. Chapter 15: The Last Word Back in London, the coins are handed to the British Museum and a tidy sum is paid to the syndicate members as compensation. "Dizzy" is appointed as a guide to an official expedition to properly excavate the site which is later shown to be the location of Ophir. Category:Plot summaries